Balsamic and Roasted Lemon

[Chris Cognac]

I was cooking a Tapa's menu for family and friends last night and was using reduced Balsamic with some beef and blue cheese....anyway I had some lemon slices that I roasted in the oven for sweet/tart flavor on another dish.....I grabbed a slice and wiped it in the sauce pan with the reduced Balsamic then sucked on it...Oh my god, the flavor was amazing, the combo of sweet and tart was refreshing and really woke up the taste buds!..My buddie Jeff tried it and agreed it was amazing. We now need to figure out how to make a sucker out of that flavor....I think I could sell a bundle, or at least serve em to friends. Has anyone else ever done this?....Maybe someone could try it and let me know what they think.

[sabg]

also very interested in what you were doing with the balsamic,beef and blue cheese. going to try out the lemon tonight

[Chris Cognac]

also very interested in what you were doing with the balsamic,beef and blue cheese.  going to try out the lemon tonight

That worked out really well, I cooked a london broil and then sliced it, put it in the tapas pan and covered it in blue cheese crumbles...then melted the cheese and drizzled the reduced balsamic over it...Came out great...I also made a pork loin pizza with feta, lemon slices and balsamic....came out good as well....last night was one of those nights when it all comes together in the kitchen..I made 10 dishes that all worked!....I have had many a night where they did not!

[Blondie]

It sounds like you made a sort of gastrique.

[Chris Cognac]

It sounds like you made a sort of gastrique.

Maybe, but I have know idea what that is....So it was not intentional....what exactly is it?

[Malawry]

A gastrique is a sweet-tart mixture you add to certain dishes to "correct" the balance of flavors. A classic gastrique is made with red wine vinegar and sugar, but you can make one with any number of other flavors. When we made gastrique at my culinary school we were supposed to add it to tomato soup, but I accidentially deglazed a pan with it (causing all my lovely fond to burn).

Balsamic vinegar is so good partly because it's gastrique-like in its flavors. Your roasted lemons in balsamic sound terrific and like they might make for an interesting roasted chicken dish to me. Dave the Cook's LSD (liquid seasoning decoction) that "corrected" the flavors of the VD Stew seemed to me very much like a gastrique, like what a classic gastrique wishes it could become when it grows up.

[Chris Cognac]

I wish I could figure a way to get the lemon and balsamic flavor into either a hard candy form....or put a lemon slice or wedge onto a stick for an after dinner treat...I will work on that one, I also might just coat a plate with the balsamic and arrange the roasted lemon slices in a circular pattern around the plate for finger food....so many ideas....brain hurting!

[fifi]

*fifi crawls out from under her rock*

This is probably a really stupid question and I may be living under a rock. What is a roasted lemon slice? More precisely, how do you do it and how do you eat it? Is it a slice of peel and all?

*returning to the netherworld of the rock*

[Chris Cognac]

*fifi crawls out from under her rock*

This is probably a really stupid question and I may be living under a rock. What is a roasted lemon slice? More precisely, how do you do it and how do you eat it? Is it a slice of peel and all?

*returning to the netherworld of the rock*

I love to grill them, but sliced them up instead and roasted them for about 10 mins....I also added them to a pizza like pepperoni slices...the juice really flavored the pork loin slices on the pizza nicely and also went well with the spiced feta I used to top the pizza with. I kept the peels on, but sliced them thin...some people at the peel and all!

[kpurvis]

I've been searching for the perfect roasted lemon with chicken after eating a dish like that at Chez Lena et Mamille near Rue Mouff a couple of years ago. So thanks for that idea, Chris. I'll play with it.

In the meantime, I'll join Fifi in coming out from under the rock and asking another stupid question: What do you mean by "tapas pan"? Are you referring simply to the pan in which you were cooking a tapas, or is there a pan by that name that I haven't encountered?

Move over, Fi -- it's crowded in here.

[fifi]

OK... So I am a little dense. You roasted the lemon slices for 10 minutes. At what temperature? How thick are the slices? What should they look like? Do you salt them before roasting?

I kept the peels on, but sliced them thin...some people at the peel and all!

That implies that not everyone eats the peel. That sounds kind of messy on a pizza. Sort of like having to get those stupid tails off of a shrimp in a pasta sauce.

Echoing kpurvis... What the hell is a tapas pan?

(That is my place, kpurvis! Move over!)

[Chris Cognac]

OK... So I am a little dense. You roasted the lemon slices for 10 minutes. At what temperature? How thick are the slices? What should they look like? Do you salt them before roasting?

I kept the peels on, but sliced them thin...some people at the peel and all!

That implies that not everyone eats the peel. That sounds kind of messy on a pizza. Sort of like having to get those stupid tails off of a shrimp in a pasta sauce.

Echoing kpurvis... What the hell is a tapas pan?

(That is my place, kpurvis! Move over!)

Tapa's pans.....I got them at costco...3 for 20 bucks..they are 8 inch non stick with 2 little handle's on the side....kinda like a mini pealla (sp?) pan...You make small dishes in them and just plop them on the bar and everyone grabs a bit out of the pan....Like you can fit 6-7 big fat shrimp in a pan, then roast em...and garnish them....it looks really neat when they come out sizzling. as for the lemons....I sliced them really thin with no salt....just put them on a pan....and some onto the pizza....this is really something to start experimenting with....You could add some spice to it before roasting....maybe some tapatio sauce....I am really gonna play with it...Maybe I can make a sugar mix that would harden and dip them....the possibility is endless...this could be a fun and simple project for us to try and give each other feedback!..What do you guys think? By the way I roasted them at 350 for about 10 mins.

[fifi]

For some reason, a technique similar to bacon candy comes to mind. Pack some sugar on the lemon slices and put them on a rack over a bacon sheet in the oven at 375 or more. (Be sure to line the sheet with some foil or you will have a helluva mess to clean up.) Bake until the slices are glazed like the bacon. I am not sure if this would work because I haven't tried it. I don't know if the water content would interfere with the candy like texture you get with the bacon. If it DOES work, then I start thinking about orange slices treated the same way. Dip in chocolate? Kumquats?

I may also try this with salting and seasoning. If I get around to it I will let you know what I come up with. (Hmmm... lightly salted lime with a sprinkle of Chipotle Tabasco.)